Jos stadium gets facelift in 38 years ahead of APC rally

The Jos International Stadium, on Zaria Road, Jos, Plateau State, has received a fresh coat of paint ahead of Friday’s All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally in the state capital.

The development has renewed attention on the stadium, which has remained incomplete nearly four decades after construction began, despite successive military and civilian administrations committing resources and making promises to complete it.

The military administration of General Lawrence Onoja initiated the project in 1988 and awarded the construction contract with a mobilisation fee of N10 million.

However, the project was abandoned after he left office, and subsequent administrations struggled to complete the facility.

Former Governor Joshua Dariye made efforts to revive the project during his administration, but those efforts did not result in its completion.

When former Governor Jonah Jang assumed office in 2007, his administration also promised to break the jinx surrounding the stadium and make its completion one of its major achievements.

The facility was subsequently redesigned to accommodate about 44,000 spectators, with the administration targeting completion before the end of 2013.

The project was also expanded to include additional sporting facilities, including basketball, hockey, and volleyball courts, to bring it closer to international standards.

However, despite the investments and expansion, the stadium remained unfinished when Mr Jang left office in 2015.

A 2017 investigation by Sunday Tribune estimated that the project had reached about 70 per cent completion under the Jang administration, while the contract sum rose substantially after changes to its scope.

The investigation also documented the deterioration of equipment purchased for the project, including imported facilities that had remained unused for years because construction work was prolonged.

Successive administrations committed to completing the facility, but nearly four decades after the project was awarded, the Jos International Stadium has yet to fulfil its intended purpose.

The main stadium remains without completed spectator seating, while bushes and overgrown vegetation continue to characterise parts of its surroundings.

However, in a development that has drawn attention to the facility’s prolonged neglect, the stadium was repainted within 48 hours ahead of the forthcoming APC campaign rally.

The speed of the intervention contrasts sharply with the decades of delays that have characterised the stadium’s construction.

While the repainting has improved the facility’s appearance, it does little to address the fundamental problems that have prevented it from serving Plateau State’s sporting needs.

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The stadium was conceived to provide a modern sporting facility for the state, create opportunities for young athletes, host major competitions and attract sporting events that could contribute to economic activities.

Instead, it has become another example of abandoned public infrastructure, with successive administrations unable to translate their promises into a completed project.

The concern is not merely about the absence of spectator seats or the overgrown surroundings. It is also about the public resources committed to a project that has remained unfinished through several changes of government.

The recent repainting has further highlighted the contrast between the urgency governments and political actors can demonstrate when preparing for major political events and the prolonged delays in delivering infrastructure meant to serve the public.

After nearly four decades, the Jos International Stadium remains unfinished.

For residents of Plateau State, a fresh coat of paint cannot substitute for a completed stadium.